Types Of Fire Alarm Systems
The most common types of alarms that businesses use are conventional and addressable alarm systems. However, there are other systems available to suit your needs.
Conventional Fire Alarm System
R-Security use market-leading conventional fire alarm equipment including the award-winning CFP range of 2-8 zone fire panels, the ActiV range of fire detectors and a host of useful fire alarm ancillaries and power supplies.
Addressable Fire Systems
Addressable fire alarms give you an easy, reliable way to locate the position of any fires or hazards in your building. Linked into a central control panel, or multiple panels, an addressable system will report back to you on where any alarm has been triggers.
Two-Wire Fire Systems
Two wire conventional fire alarm panels allow sounders, beacons, detectors and call points within one zone to run on the same pair of wires, meaning there is no need for a separate sounder circuit. This reduces the wiring costs.
Extinguisher Systems
Fire suppression systems are used to extinguish or prevent the spread of fire in a building or vehicle. Suppression systems use a combination of dry chemicals and/or wet agents to suppress equipment fires.
Fire Safety Statistics
Every year the fire and rescue service is called to over 600,000 fires which result in over 800 deaths and over 17,000 injuries. About 50,000 (140 a day) of these are in the home and kill nearly 500 and injure over 11,000, many which could have been prevented if people had an early warning and were able to get out in time. In fact you are twice as likely to die in a house fire that has no smoke alarm than a house that does according to UK Fire Service Resources Ltd.
Legal Obligations (Fire Safety)
R Security Alarms understands that as a Fire Alarm Service and Maintenance provider we have a duty of care to work hand in hand with our customers to assist and advise them in understanding their legal obligations regarding the service and maintenance of their fire alarm system.
If a fire alarm system is deemed to be necessary then a system of maintenance is required otherwise the user would be in breach of The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
Who’s responsible for Fire Safety?
You’re responsible for fire safety in business or other non-domestic premises if you’re:
- an employer
- the owner
- the landlord
- an occupier
- anyone else with control of the premises, for example a facilities manager, building manager, managing agent or risk assessor.
What are the duties of a responsible person?
R Security can work with you or the person responsible for fire safety to ensure you have a fully working fire alarm and ensure that it is maintained to the highest of standards. A responsible person is required to: –
- Be in control of the fire alarm and have the confidence, power and AUTHORITY to make sure that the service, maintenance and any other work is carried out. The service/maintenance should be regularly scheduled and carried out by a competent person/company, and the RP should ensure any rectification work is authorised and carried out to keep the system in good working order.
- Write and understand the procedures to be followed in the event of the fire alarm activating.
- Ensure all the relevant people concerned with the fire detection and alarm system are trained on its use.
- Liaise with the relevant people concerned to ensure that any changes of use are recorded and any necessary action initiated. (i.e. building alterations, changes of room functions etc.)
- Ensure that the call points and detectors are not obstructed, blocked or obscured and that the fire alarm panel, keys or codes are accessible to all the relevant people who have been trained.
- The fire alarm log book and all paperwork associated with the fire alarm is kept up to date.
- Be pro-active in the prevention of false or unwanted alarms.
- Carry out and log the Daily, Weekly and Monthly testing of the fire alarm.
- Be aware of and take adequate precautions during any work being carried out on site.